Jersey Girl Book Reviews: The Favorites by Layne Fargo (Book Review)

Saturday, February 22, 2025

The Favorites by Layne Fargo (Book Review)

The Favorites by Layne Fargo

Publisher: Random House

Publication Date: January 14, 2025

Format: Hardcover - 464 pages

Paperback - 672 pages

Kindle - 3 MB / 433 pages

Nook - 2 MB

Audible - 13 Hours 36 Minutes

ISBN (Hardcover): 978-1784745486

ISBN (Paperback): 979-8217013944

ASIN (Kindle): B0D1QKJLYT

ASIN (Audible): B0D47SSRQF

BNID: 978-0593732052

Genre: Women's Fiction

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Disclaimer: I bought a hardcover copy of the book via my subscription to Book Of The Month, and received a kindle edition from NetGalley.

Book Description:

To the world, they were a scandal. To each other, an obsession.

An epic love story set in the sparkling, savage sphere of elite figure skating about a woman determined to carve her own path on and off the ice.

She might not have a famous name, funding, or her family’s support, but Katarina Shaw has always known that she was destined to become an Olympic skater. When she meets Heath Rocha, a lonely kid stuck in the foster care system, their instant connection makes them a formidable duo on the ice. Clinging to skating—and each other—to escape their turbulent lives, Kat and Heath go from childhood sweethearts to champion ice dancers, captivating the world with their scorching chemistry, rebellious style, and rollercoaster relationship. Until a shocking incident at the Olympic Games brings their partnership to a sudden end.

As the ten-year anniversary of their final skate approaches, an unauthorized documentary reignites the public obsession with Shaw and Rocha, claiming to uncover the "real story" through interviews with their closest friends and fiercest rivals. Kat wants nothing to do with the documentary. But she can't stand the thought of someone else defining her legacy either. So, after a decade of silence, she's telling her story: from the childhood tragedies that created her all-consuming bond with Heath to the clash of desires that tore them apart. Sensational rumors have haunted their every step for years, but the truth may be even more shocking than the headlines.

Inspired by the powerful love and hate that fuel Emily Bronte’s classic, Wuthering Heights, The Favorites is an exhilarating dance between passion, ambition, and what it truly means to win.

My Book Review:

In The Favorites, author Layne Fargo weaves an exciting women's fiction story about love, passion, ambition, scandal, and the determination to win in the world of figure skating.

Ice dancers Katarina Shaw and Heath Rocha met at the local ice rink when they were kids. From the beginning of their partnership, they set their goal on one thing, the Olympic gold medal. Through trials and tribulations, highs and lows, and unprecedent success, Team Shaw-Rocha were the favorites to win Olympic gold in ice dancing, that is until a scandalous incident at the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia brings a dramatic end to their partnership. On the tenth-year anniversary of the Sochi Winter Olympics, a documentary is released about the Shaw-Rocha partnership with salacious interviews and the unearthing of secrets about the pair from friends, rivals, and skating officials, Kat decides to stop the speculation and tell her own story.

The Favorites is a fascinating story that depicts the complexity of Kat and Heath's story. Their story is wrought with angsty drama, secrets, challenges, heartaches, betrayals, and their enduring bond of friendship/romance. I loved this story! If you are a fan of elite figure skating, then you must read this book! It was an exciting, dramatic, addictive look behind the curtains of the figure skating world. You can't help but get drawn into Kat and Heath's story, and how they took me on their journey to skate all the events leading up to the Winter Olympics.

I would be remiss if I didn't mention that I grew up as a diehard fan of elite figure skating. As I read this story, I felt like I was taken on one heck of an emotional roller coaster ride, and that this breathtaking story left me emotionally spent but wanting so much more. It just doesn't get any better than that.

The Favorites is a fascinating women's fiction tale that will keep the reader engaged from beginning to end!

RATING: 5 Stars

About The Author

Layne Fargo has a background in theater, women’s studies, and library science, so it’s only fitting that she now writes deliciously dramatic, unapologetically feminist stories for a living. She’s the author of the novels The Favorites, They Never Learn, and Temper, as well as co-author on the bestselling Young Rich Widows series, and her work has been translated into over a dozen languages. Layne lives in Chicago with her partner, their pets, and an ever-expanding collection of books she’s definitely going to read before she dies.